Information presentation device

Abstract

The invention provides an information presentation device which stabilizes the time from operation of a driver to information presentation. An information presentation device (100) provided in a vehicle is configured to be provided with: a parameter detection unit (90) that detects a parameter (theta) relating to an operation amount of a driving operation device; a vibration generating unit (70) that vibrates air around the occupant; and a vibration adjustment unit (130, 160) that changes the magnitude of the vibration generated by the vibration generation unit in accordance with the amount of change per unit time of the parameter, the parameter detection unit acquiring the parameter at least twice within a required time, which is the time required from the input of the parameter to the output of the vibration. The vibration adjustment unit calculates the amount of change in the parameter by using the parameter previously acquired by the parameter detection unit when a required time or longer is required to acquire the parameter twice.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information presenting device for presenting information related to the behavior of the vehicle to a passenger of the vehicle. Background Art

[0002] In vehicles such as automobiles, as a technology related to outputting sound to passengers according to the state of the vehicle, for example, Patent Document 1 describes a method of presenting the steering amount of a steering wheel using sound that changes in conjunction with the steering amount in order to provide a driving assistance device that can easily identify a steering angle and a steering direction.

[0003] Specifically, it is recorded that the sound level becomes higher as the steering amount increases, or the intensity, pitch, timbre, sound pressure, frequency, position of the sound image, etc. of the sound are changed to present the steering amount of the steering wheel.

[0004] Patent document 2 describes a vehicle music generating device that simply generates music that reflects the behavior of a vehicle and the operation of a driver. The vehicle music generating device comprises: a storage unit that stores a plurality of sound source cycle patterns corresponding to respective information based on the operation of the driver of the vehicle or the behavior of the vehicle; and a control unit that selects a specific sound source cycle pattern from the plurality of sound source cycle patterns based on respective information and controls the output or stop of the output.

[0005] Prior art literature

[0006] Patent Literature

[0007] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-62706

[0008] Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2016-66912 Summary of the invention

[0009] Technical issues

[0010] Since there is a time response delay from the start of vehicle steering to the actual body behavior, lateral acceleration, yaw rate, roll angle, etc., depending on the conditions of the steering action, the occupants may sometimes feel discomfort and uneasiness due to the sudden generation of lateral acceleration, etc., and thus be unable to properly maintain their bodies.

[0011] In response to this, measures such as reducing the yaw rate gain with respect to the steering angle of the vehicle or improving the holding performance of the occupant on the seat or the like are also considered.

[0012] However, when the yaw rate gain is reduced, the responsiveness of the vehicle is slowed down, which leads to a loss of vehicle performance and marketability. In addition, it is difficult to appropriately deal with occupants of various body shapes using measures for seats.

[0013] In contrast, if an information presenting device is provided that outputs an acoustic signal in accordance with the amount of operation of the driving operation device by the driver, it is possible to improve the predictability of the occupant's behavior caused by the driving operation of the vehicle.

[0014] However, in such an information presenting device that makes use of tactile vibration or sound signal, the effect may be affected by the time from the driver's operation to the information presenting.

[0015] For example, if the time from operation input to output (information presentation) is late, not only the effect is lost, but also driving becomes difficult due to the opposite effect.

[0016] In view of the above-mentioned problems, an object of the present invention is to provide an information presentation device that has a stable time from the driver's operation to the information presentation.

[0017] Technical Solution

[0018] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an information prompting device of one embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that it is an information prompting device arranged in a vehicle, and comprises: a parameter detection unit, which detects a parameter related to the operation amount of a driving operation device of the vehicle; a vibration generating unit, which vibrates the air around the occupant or a component contacted by the occupant; and a vibration adjustment unit, which changes the size of the vibration generated by the vibration generating unit according to the amount of change of the parameter per unit time, and the parameter detection unit obtains the parameter at least twice within the time required from the input of the parameter to the output of the vibration, that is, the required time, and when it takes more than the required time to obtain the parameter twice, the vibration adjustment unit uses the parameter previously obtained by the parameter detection unit to calculate the amount of change of the parameter.

[0019] Therefore, for example, when parameters cannot be obtained twice within the required time due to the communication status of the vehicle-mounted LAN such as the CAN communication system, the change in the parameter can be calculated using the parameter obtained previously (typically the previous one), thereby preventing the output delay of the information prompt device from causing driving difficulty.

[0020] Another embodiment of the information prompting device of the present invention is characterized in that it is an information prompting device arranged in a vehicle, and comprises: a parameter detection unit, which detects a parameter related to the operation amount of the driving operation device of the vehicle; a vibration generating unit, which vibrates the air around the occupant or a component contacted by the occupant; and a vibration adjustment unit, which changes the size of the vibration generated by the vibration generating unit according to the amount of change of the parameter per unit time, and the parameter detection unit obtains the parameter at least three times within the time required from the input of the parameter to the output of the vibration, that is, the required time, and when a part of the parameter cannot be obtained, the vibration adjustment unit uses the other parameters obtained by the parameter detection unit to calculate the amount of change of the parameter.

[0021] Thus, by acquiring the parameter three or more times within the required time, even when a part of information cannot be acquired, the amount of change per unit time of the parameter can be calculated within the required time by excluding data of the acquisition delay portion.

[0022] Therefore, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the output of the information presentation device is delayed and driving difficulty occurs.

[0023] Another embodiment of the information prompting device of the present invention is characterized in that it is an information prompting device arranged in a vehicle and comprises: a parameter detection unit, which detects a parameter related to the operation amount of the driving operation device of the vehicle; a vibration generating unit, which vibrates the air around the occupant or a component contacted by the occupant; and a vibration adjustment unit, which changes the size of the vibration generated by the vibration generating unit according to the amount of change of the parameter per unit time, and the parameter detection unit obtains the parameter at least twice within the time required from the input of the parameter to the output of the vibration, that is, the required time, and when the parameter can only obtain one or less data within the required time, the vibration adjustment unit will maintain the change of the parameter used to set the size of the vibration at the previous value.

[0024] Thus, when data of only one or less parameters can be acquired within the required time, the change amount of the parameter for setting the magnitude of vibration is maintained at the previous value, thereby preventing the output delay of the information presentation device from causing driving difficulty.

[0025] In the method of calculating the amount of change in a parameter and then transmitting it to CAN or the like, if the acquisition time of the amount of change is longer than the required time, the previous value can be maintained in the same manner as in the above method.

[0026] In each of the above inventions, it is possible to construct a device comprising: a waveform storage unit that stores the waveform of the in-vehicle sound when the vehicle is traveling on a specific road surface; and an excitation waveform generating unit that causes the vibration generating unit to vibrate with the waveform stored in the waveform storage unit when the vehicle is traveling on the specific road surface.

[0027] Thus, by generating vibrations with the waveform stored during actual driving, natural information presentation can be performed, and by using the waveform stored in advance, output delay can be prevented compared to the case where the waveform is acquired each time.

[0028] In each of the above-mentioned inventions, the vibration generating unit can be configured to control the output timing of the vibration in such a manner that the ratio of the time from the change of the parameter to the output of the vibration to the time from the change of the parameter to the occurrence of a predetermined behavior of the vehicle is maintained within a predetermined allowable range.

[0029] This can prevent the timing of outputting vibration from being varied and causing discomfort, even when the response characteristics of the vehicle vary depending on the driver's operation frequency or the like, for example.

[0030] Technical Effects

[0031] As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an information presentation device in which the time from the driver's operation to the information presentation is stable. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] Figure 1 It is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of an electric power steering device of a vehicle having a first embodiment to which the information presenting device of the present invention is applied.

[0033] Figure 2 It is a diagram schematically showing the system configuration of the information presentation device according to the first embodiment.

[0034] Figure 3 It is a diagram schematically showing an example of an excitation waveform in the first embodiment.

[0035] Figure 4 It is a diagram schematically showing the timing of electrical pulses emitted by a receptor when stimulated.

[0036] Figure 5 is a graph showing the sensitivity distribution of Pacinian corpuscles and Meissner corpuscles with respect to frequency.

[0037] Figure 6 FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an example of gain adjustment in the first gain adjustment unit.

[0038] Figure 7This is a diagram schematically showing an example of the output history of a microphone.

[0039] Figure 8 This is a diagram showing an example of the correlation between the sound pressure and frequency of background noise.

[0040] Fig. 9 FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an example of gain adjustment in the second gain adjustment unit.

[0041] Fig.10 It is a diagram schematically showing the arrangement in the cabin of a vehicle in which the information presenting device according to the first embodiment is installed.

[0042] Fig.11 This is a diagram showing an example of a Bode plot expressing a normal frequency response of a vehicle.

[0043] Fig.12 It is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of an automatic driving system of a vehicle provided with an information presenting device according to a fifth embodiment.

[0044] Explanation of symbols

[0045] 1: Electric power steering

[0046] W: Wheel

[0047] 10: Steering Wheel

[0048] 20: Steering shaft

[0049] 21: Intermediate shaft

[0050] 22: Pinion shaft

[0051] 23, 24: Universal joint

[0052] 30: Rack shaft

[0053] 31: Rack and Pinion

[0054] 40: Rack housing

[0055] 41: Rack guard

[0056] 50: Pull rod

[0057] 51, 52: Ball joint

[0058] 60: Shell

[0059] 71: Steering angle sensor

[0060] 72: Torque sensor

[0061] 80: Actuator unit

[0062] 81: Motor

[0063] 82: Gearbox

[0064] 90: Electric power steering control unit

[0065] 100: Information prompt device

[0066] 110: Waveform generation unit

[0067] 111: Waveform storage unit

[0068] 112: Positioning device

[0069] 120: Differential calculation unit

[0070] 130: First gain adjustment unit

[0071] 140: Microphone

[0072] 150: Sensing value calculation unit

[0073] 160: Second gain adjustment unit

[0074] 170 (170FR, 170FL, 170RR, 170RL): Speakers

[0075] 200: Carriage

[0076] 210: Driver's seat

[0077] 220: Passenger seat

[0078] 230: Backseat

[0079] 240: Dashboard

[0080] 300: Autonomous driving system

[0081] 310: Autonomous driving control unit

[0082] 320: Engine control unit

[0083] 330: Transmission control unit

[0084] 340: Brake control unit DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0085] <First embodiment>

[0086] Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the information presentation device to which the present invention is applied will be described.

[0087] The information presentation device according to the embodiment is provided in, for example, a four-wheel vehicle (for example, an automobile such as a passenger car) in which two front wheels are steered (turned).

[0088] The vehicle includes an electric power steering device that applies a steering assist force to a steering device for steering the front wheels using an electric motor.

[0089] Figure 1 It is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of an electric power steering device for a vehicle according to the first embodiment.

[0090] The electric power steering device 1 is configured to include a steering wheel 10, a steering shaft 20, an intermediate shaft 21, a pinion shaft 22, a rack shaft 30, a rack housing 40, a tie rod 50, a housing 60, a steering angle sensor 71, a torque sensor 72, an actuator unit 80, an electric power steering control unit (EPS control unit) 90, etc.

[0091] The steering wheel 10 is, for example, an annular operation member, through which the driver inputs a steering operation by turning the steering wheel 10 .

[0092] The steering wheel 10 is disposed in the vehicle cabin so as to face the driver's seat.

[0093] The occupant (driver) senses the steering feeling of the vehicle based on the tactile sensation (tactile sense) presented to the fingers from the steering wheel 10 .

[0094] The steering shaft 20 is a rotating shaft having one end attached to the steering wheel 10 and transmitting the rotational motion of the steering wheel 10 to a rack and pinion mechanism, which converts the rotational motion of the steering wheel 10 into a translational motion in the vehicle width direction.

[0095] An intermediate shaft 21 and a pinion shaft 22 are sequentially connected to an end portion of the steering shaft 20 on the opposite side to the steering wheel 10 side.

[0096] Universal joints 23 and 24 are provided between the steering shaft 20 and the intermediate shaft 21 and between the intermediate shaft 21 and the pinion shaft 22 , respectively, so as to be rotatable while the shafts are bent.

[0097] A pinion gear that meshes with the rack gear 31 of the rack shaft 30 to drive the rack shaft 30 is formed at the front end portion of the pinion shaft 22 .

[0098] The rack shaft 30 is a columnar member disposed such that the longitudinal direction (axial direction) thereof extends along the vehicle width direction.

[0099] The rack shaft 30 is supported so as to be translatably movable in the vehicle width direction relative to the vehicle body.

[0100] A rack gear 31 that meshes with the pinion gear of the pinion shaft 22 is formed in a portion of the rack shaft 30 .

[0101] The rack shaft 30 drives the rack gear 31 via the pinion gear in response to the rotation of the steering shaft 20 , thereby translating (moving straight) in the vehicle width direction.

[0102] The rack gear 31 is disposed so as to be offset to either the left or right side (usually, the driver's seat side) in the vehicle width direction.

[0103] For example, when the vehicle is a so-called right-hand drive vehicle with the right front seat as the driver's seat, the rack gear 31 is arranged so as to be offset to the right side from the center in the neutral position.

[0104] The rack housing 40 is a substantially cylindrical member that supports the rack shaft 30 so as to be relatively displaceable in the vehicle width direction and accommodates the rack shaft 30 .

[0105] Rack guards 41 are provided at both ends of the rack housing 40 .

[0106] The rack guard 41 is a member that allows the tie rod 50 to be displaced relative to the rack housing 40 and prevents foreign matter such as dust from entering the rack housing 40 .

[0107] The rack cover 41 is formed of a resin material such as elastomer into a flexible bellows shape.

[0108] The tie rod 50 is a shaft-shaped linkage member that connects the end of the rack shaft 30 to the knuckle arm 61 of the housing 60 and rotates the housing 60 about the kingpin axis in conjunction with the translational movement of the rack shaft 30 .

[0109] An inner end portion of the tie rod 50 in the vehicle width direction is swingably connected to an end portion of the rack shaft 30 via a ball joint 51 .

[0110] The end portion of the tie rod 50 on the outer side in the vehicle width direction is connected to the knuckle arm 61 of the housing 60 via a ball joint 52 .

[0111] The housing (knuckle) 60 is a member that accommodates a hub bearing that supports the wheel W so as to be rotatable around the axle.

[0112] The housing 60 has a knuckle arm 61 formed to protrude toward the front side or the rear side with respect to the axle.

[0113] The housing 60 is supported so as to be rotatable about a kingpin axis serving as a predetermined rotation center axis.

[0114] The kingpin axis is a virtual axis connecting the bearing center of the strut top bracket and the center of the ball joint connecting the lower part of the housing 60 and the transverse link (lower arm) when the front suspension of the vehicle is a MacPherson strut type, for example.

[0115] The housing 60 is pushed and pulled by the rack shaft 30 in the vehicle width direction via the tie rod 50 , thereby rotating about the kingpin axis to steer the wheel W.

[0116] The steering angle sensor 71 is an angle encoder that detects the rotation angle position of the pinion shaft 22 .

[0117] The output of the steering angle sensor 71 is provided to the electric power steering control unit 90 .

[0118] The electric power steering control unit 90 can calculate the steering angle (toe angle change angle associated with steering) θ of the wheels W based on the output of the steering angle sensor 71 .

[0119] The torque sensor 72 is a sensor that detects torque (mainly the steering force of the driver) acting on the pinion shaft 22 .

[0120] The torque sensor 72 is provided at a portion of the pinion shaft 22 that is closer to the intermediate shaft 21 than the actuator unit 80 .

[0121] The output of the torque sensor 72 is provided to the electric power steering control unit 90 .

[0122] The actuator unit 80 is a driving device that drives the pinion shaft 22 to rotate to perform power assist during manual driving and steering operation during automatic driving.

[0123] The actuator unit 80 is configured to include a motor 81 , a gear box 82 , and the like.

[0124] The motor 81 is an electric actuator that generates a driving force to be applied to the steering shaft 20 .

[0125] The rotation direction and output torque of the motor 81 are controlled by the electric power steering control unit 90 .

[0126] The gear box 82 includes a reduction gear train that reduces the speed of the rotation output of the motor 81 (amplifies the torque) and transmits the speed to the pinion shaft 22 .

[0127] The electric power steering (EPS) control unit 90 is a control device (motor control unit) that provides a current instruction value for controlling the rotation direction and output torque of the motor 81 .

[0128] The electric power steering control unit 90 can be configured as, for example, a microcomputer including an information processing unit such as a CPU, a storage unit such as a RAM and a ROM, an input / output interface, and a bus connecting them.

[0129] The electric power steering control unit 90 can obtain information such as the output of the steering angle sensor 71 and the torque sensor 72, the vehicle's running speed (vehicle speed), and the operating status of other vehicle-mounted electronic devices via an in-vehicle LAN such as a CAN communication system or directly.

[0130] The electric power steering control unit 90 sets a current instruction value to be supplied to the motor 81 based on the torque input direction and the detected torque value of the torque sensor 72 when the vehicle is manually driven.

[0131] The electric power steering control unit 90 includes a power supply device that supplies electric power having a current value and a voltage value corresponding to the current instruction value to the motor 81 via a signal line.

[0132] Figure 2 It is a diagram schematically showing the system configuration of the information presentation device according to the first embodiment.

[0133] The information presenting device 100 vibrates the air around the ears of the occupant through the speaker 170 disposed in the vehicle cabin, and notifies the occupant of a precursor to the occurrence of a vehicle behavior through an acoustic signal.

[0134] The information presentation device 100 includes a waveform generation unit 110 , a differential operation unit 120 , a first gain adjustment unit 130 , a microphone 140 , a sensing value operation unit 150 , a second gain adjustment unit 160 , a speaker 170 , and the like.

[0135] The waveform generation unit 110 generates an excitation waveform which is a waveform of an acoustic signal generated by the speaker 170 .

[0136] Figure 3 It is a diagram schematically showing an example of an excitation waveform in the first embodiment.

[0137] exist Figure 3 In the figure, the horizontal axis represents time and the vertical axis represents voltage (amplitude).

[0138] For example Figure 3 As shown in (a) of FIG. 1 , the excitation waveform can be set to a sine wave.

[0139] In addition, for example Figure 3 As shown in (b) of FIG. 1 , the excitation waveform can be a waveform obtained by superimposing (combining) a plurality of sinusoidal waves having different wavelengths.

[0140] In addition, the excitation waveform is not limited to these waveforms, and can be changed as appropriate.

[0141] For example, as the excitation waveform, various waveforms such as a rectangular wave, a triangular wave, and a waveform simulating the driving sound of a vehicle can be used alone, or various waveforms such as a rectangular wave, a triangular wave, and a waveform simulating the driving sound of a vehicle can be synthesized with other waveforms for use.

[0142] In addition, the waveform generation unit 110 has a function of setting a waveform obtained by simulating the indoor sound during actual vehicle driving as the excitation waveform.

[0143] The waveform generation unit 110 is connected to a waveform storage unit 111 and a positioning device 112.

[0144] The waveform storage unit 111 has a storage medium for storing waveform data of the indoor sound during vehicle driving recorded by a microphone 140 described later.

[0145] The positioning device 112 detects the current position of the own vehicle using, for example, a satellite positioning system or the like.

[0146] The waveform storage unit 111 has a function of recording the waveform data in association with the position information detected by the positioning device 112.

[0147] In addition, when the information presentation device 100 is operating, when the vehicle is traveling on a road where waveform data is stored in the waveform storage unit 111, the waveform data obtained during traveling on that road is supplied to the waveform generation unit 110 as the excitation waveform.

[0148] In the first embodiment, the frequency of the excitation waveform can be set to, for example, 100 to 400 Hz, and more preferably set to have a main frequency in the range of 150 to 300 Hz.

[0149] Hereinafter, the reasons therefor will be described.

[0150] As the sensory receptors that sense vibration when exciting the air around the occupant, there are Merkel cells, Meissner corpuscles, Pacinian corpuscles, etc.

[0151] Figure 4 It is a diagram schematically showing the time of the electrical pulse emitted by the receptor when stimulated.

[0152] In Figure 4 it, the horizontal axis represents time, and the vertical axis successively represents pressure, and the electrical pulse generation states of Merkel cells, Meissner corpuscles, and Pacinian corpuscles from the upper side.

[0153] The response of Merkel cells is relatively slow and corresponds to the DC component.

[0154] Meissner corpuscles correspond to the moment when the rate of change (speed) of the contact pressure occurs.

[0155] Pacinian corpuscles correspond to the instant of transient change and are the most sensitive of these receptors.

[0156] As a receptor through which passengers sense tiny vibrations as a combination of auditory and tactile information, Pacinian corpuscles are believed to have the highest sensitivity.

[0157] Figure 5 is a graph showing the distribution of the sensitivity of Pacinian corpuscles and Meissner corpuscles with respect to frequency.

[0158] exist Figure 5 In FIG. 1 , the horizontal axis represents the frequency and the vertical axis represents the amplitude at the threshold value, and it is shown that the smaller the value, the better the sensitivity.

[0159] like Figure 5 As shown, the Pacinian corpuscles exhibit good sensitivity in the region around 100 to 400 Hz, and particularly exhibit better sensitivity in the region around 150 to 300 Hz.

[0160] Such an area is included in the range of 20 Hz to 20 kHz which is generally set as the audible range of humans.

[0161] As an example, the main frequency of the excitation waveform can be set to 250 Hz.

[0162] The differential calculation unit 120 acquires information on the steering angle θ of the wheel W detected by the steering angle sensor 71 from the electric power steering control unit 90 , and calculates a time-differentiated differential value Δθ (amount of change).

[0163] The differential calculation unit 120 sequentially presents the calculated differential values ​​Δθ to the first gain adjustment unit 130 .

[0164] The first gain adjustment unit 130 performs a first gain adjustment, which will be described below, on the fundamental wave of the excitation waveform generated by the waveform generation unit 110 .

[0165] The first gain adjustment changes the gain G1 which is an output gain obtained by multiplying the voltage of the excitation waveform according to the differential value (rate of change per unit time) of the steering angle θ (a parameter related to the steering amount) of the steering device.

[0166] Figure 6 FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an example of gain adjustment in the first gain adjustment unit.

[0167] exist Figure 6 In FIG. 5 , the horizontal axis represents the absolute value of the differential value Δθ of the steering angle θ of the wheel FW, and the vertical axis represents the gain G1 multiplied by the voltage of the excitation waveform.

[0168] The gain G1 can be configured to increase in response to an increase in the absolute value of the differential value Δθ.

[0169] The increase rate of the gain G1 in the first gain adjustment unit 130 with respect to the increase in the absolute value of the differential value Δθ can be configured to be maximum in a region where the absolute value of the differential value Δθ is small and to decrease in response to the increase in the absolute value of the differential value Δθ.

[0170] For example, the gain G1 in the first gain adjustment unit 130 can be calculated using a logarithmic function based on the absolute value of the differential value Δθ of the steering angle θ.

[0171] The gain G1 is expressed by the following equation 1, for example.

[0172] Gain G1 = log (absolute value of steering angle differential value Δθ × coefficient k) (Formula 1)

[0173] The coefficient k can be set to a value that is set in accordance with the characteristics of the vehicle (for example, the yaw gain with respect to the steering angle θ, the position of the center of gravity, etc.) at, for example, the development stage of the vehicle.

[0174] The microphone 140 is a sound collecting device that is disposed in the vehicle compartment and collects background noise in the vehicle compartment.

[0175] Microphone 140 is preferably disposed at a position close to the ear of the occupant, and can be configured to be provided on a headrest portion of a seat, for example.

[0176] The output of the microphone 140 is presented to the sensing value calculation unit 150 .

[0177] The sensing value calculation unit 150 extracts a component of a predetermined frequency band from the background noise of the vehicle acquired by the microphone 140 , and presents the sound pressure of the extracted component to the second gain adjustment unit 160 as a sensing value.

[0178] Figure 7 This is a diagram schematically showing an example of the output history of a microphone.

[0179] exist Figure 7 In FIG. 1 , the horizontal axis represents time, and the vertical axis represents the sound pressure of the background noise acquired by the microphone 140 .

[0180] The sensing value calculation unit 150 performs a fast Fourier transform (FFT) process on the sound signal of the background noise acquired by the microphone 140 to convert it into a frequency domain, and further performs a bandpass filter process to extract a component of a predetermined frequency band.

[0181] The extracted frequency band is set to include the main frequency of the excitation waveform output by the waveform generation unit 110 .

[0182] The sensing value calculation unit 150 sets the average sound pressure of the extracted frequency band as the sensing value used in the second gain adjustment.

[0183] Figure 8 This is a diagram showing an example of the correlation between the sound pressure and frequency of background noise.

[0184] exist Figure 8 In the figure, the horizontal axis represents frequency and the vertical axis represents sound pressure.

[0185] The bandpass filter can be configured to extract a frequency band near the main frequency (250 Hz as an example) of the excitation waveform in the waveform generation unit 110 , for example.

[0186] The sound pressure in the extracted frequency band (as an example, the average value of the frequency band) is provided to the second gain adjustment unit 160 as a sensing value.

[0187] The second gain adjustment unit 160 further performs a second gain adjustment, which will be described below, on the excitation waveform after the first gain adjustment.

[0188] Since the second gain adjustment adjusts the output amplitude of the excitation waveform in response to changes in background noise (driving system noise, aerodynamic noise, road noise, etc.) when the vehicle is traveling, the gain of the excitation waveform changes according to the sensed value of the noise in the vehicle cabin.

[0189] The second gain adjustment unit 160 performs second gain adjustment based on the output of the sensing value calculation unit 150 .

[0190] The second gain adjustment unit 160 sets the gain G2 based on the sensing value output by the sensing value calculation unit 150 .

[0191] Fig. 9 FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an example of gain adjustment in the second gain adjustment unit.

[0192] exist Fig. 9 In FIG. 1 , the horizontal axis represents the sensed value, and the vertical axis represents the gain G2 multiplied by the voltage of the excitation waveform.

[0193] The gain G2 can be configured to increase in response to an increase in the sensed value.

[0194] Gain G2 is set so that the sound pressure of the sound output from speaker 170 based on the excitation amplitude does not stand out with respect to the sound pressure of the background noise near the ears of the occupant.

[0195] Preferably, the gain G2 may be set so that the sound based on the excitation amplitude is mixed into the background noise of the vehicle and reaches a sound pressure level that the occupant can hear unconsciously.

[0196] The output value (voltage) A of the excitation waveform after the first gain adjustment and the second gain adjustment described above is expressed as Equation 2.

[0197] Output value A = waveform generation unit output value × gain G1 × gain G2

[0198] = waveform generation unit output value × log (absolute value of steering angle differential value Δθ × coefficient k) × gain G2 (Formula 2)

[0199] Speaker 170 is a vibration device that is disposed in the vehicle cabin and uses output value A to vibrate the air around the occupants in the vehicle cabin to generate sound.

[0200] The arrangement of the speaker 170 will be described in detail later.

[0201] Speaker 170 may be configured to be shared with a speaker used for sound reproduction of a car audio system, for example.

[0202] In addition, the information display device 100 may be provided with a dedicated speaker 170 .

[0203] Fig.10 It is a diagram schematically showing the arrangement in the cabin of a vehicle in which the information presenting device according to the first embodiment is installed.

[0204] Inside the vehicle compartment 200 , a driver's seat 210 , a passenger seat 220 , a rear seat 230 , a dashboard 240 , and the like are provided.

[0205] The driver's seat 210 and the passenger seat 220 are front seats disposed at the front of the vehicle compartment.

[0206] The driver's seat 210 and the passenger seat 220 are arranged side by side in the vehicle width direction.

[0207] exist Fig.10 In the illustrated example, the vehicle is a so-called right-hand drive vehicle, and the driver's seat 210 is provided on the right side and the passenger seat 220 is provided on the left side relative to the left-right center of the vehicle body.

[0208] The driver's seat 210 and the passenger seat 220 each include a cushion portion for placing the occupant's buttocks and thighs, a seat back portion disposed behind the occupant's back, and a headrest portion provided behind the occupant's head.

[0209] The rear seat 230 is a long seat arranged behind the driver's seat 210 and the passenger seat 220 .

[0210] The rear seat 230 can accommodate, for example, two passengers sitting side by side transversely.

[0211] The rear seat 230 includes a cushion portion on which the buttocks and thighs of the occupant are placed, a seat back portion disposed behind the back of the occupant, and a headrest portion provided behind the head of the occupant.

[0212] The right side seating portion of the rear seat 230 is arranged behind the driver's seat 210 , and the left side seating portion is arranged behind the passenger seat 220 .

[0213] The instrument panel 240 is provided near the front end of the vehicle interior 200 and houses, for example, an instrument panel, a ventilation, air-conditioning and heating device, an infotainment device, and the like.

[0214] The instrument panel 240 is arranged to face the passengers seated in the driver's seat 210 and the passenger seat 220 .

[0215] exist Fig.10 In the illustrated example, four speakers 170 are provided in a separated manner in the front, rear, left, and right sides of the vehicle interior 200 , for example.

[0216] In the following description, each speaker 170 is denoted by a suffix corresponding to the position.

[0217] Right front speaker 170FR is disposed near the right end portion of instrument panel 240 .

[0218] The speaker 170FR is a directional speaker directed toward the head (ear) of the occupant sitting in the driver's seat 210 .

[0219] The left front speaker 170FL is arranged near the left end portion of the instrument panel 240 .

[0220] Speaker 170FL is a directional speaker directed toward the head (ear) of the occupant sitting in passenger seat 220 .

[0221] The right rear speaker 170RR is arranged at the headrest portion of the driver's seat 210 .

[0222] Speaker 170RR is a directional speaker that is directed toward the head (ear) of the occupant sitting on the right side of rear seat 230 .

[0223] The left rear speaker 170RL is disposed in the headrest portion of the passenger seat 220 .

[0224] Speaker 170RL is a directional speaker that is directed toward the head (ear) of the occupant sitting on the left side of rear seat 230 .

[0225] In the first embodiment, according to the above configuration, when the driver performs a steering operation and the steering angle θ of the wheels W changes, a sound having an amplitude corresponding to the differential value Δθ of the steering angle θ is emitted from the speaker 170 to the occupant.

[0226] Since the sound is masked by the running sound of the vehicle (background noise), it is difficult for the occupant to consciously recognize it as a sound, but the occupant can unconsciously foresee the vehicle behavior accompanied by the occurrence of lateral acceleration and yaw rate.

[0227] In order to obtain the effect of the information presentation device 100 , the time from the start of a driving operation (for example, a steering operation) to the presentation of information needs to be within the time until the occupant recognizes the vehicle behavior.

[0228] Humans perceive vehicle behavior because the yaw rate, lateral jerk (acceleration of the vehicle) exceeds a predetermined discrimination threshold.

[0229] As an example, the yaw rate discrimination threshold is set to 0.2 deg / s, and the lateral jerk discrimination threshold is set to 0.5 m / s^3.

[0230] Before the behavior of the vehicle exceeds the discrimination threshold, it is necessary to complete the acquisition and calculation of the operation information (for example, the steering angle θ) and the output of the sound information.

[0231] Fig.11 This is a diagram showing an example of a Bode plot expressing a normal frequency response of a vehicle.

[0232] like Fig.11 As shown, when the frequency is 0.4 Hz, the phase delay is -10.68 degrees, which is equivalent to a delay time of 74 ms.

[0233] In addition, when the frequency is 0.7 Hz, the phase delay is -20.30 degrees, which is equivalent to a delay time of 80 ms.

[0234] Therefore, when controlling the information prompting device 100, it is necessary to complete the calculation and output of the sound information (vibration) within the delay time (required time) after a change (driving operation performed by the driver) in a parameter related to the driving operation (for example, the steering angle θ) occurs.

[0235] It should be noted that although the Bode plot shows a delay relative to the steady-state input, in the transition region at the beginning of the operation, the output must be completed within the delay time of the vehicle behavior relative to the operation delay. The delay in this case varies depending on the characteristics of the vehicle.

[0236] In the first embodiment, the information presentation device 100 acquires data related to the steering angle θ as the operation amount of the driving operation device at least twice within a predetermined required time.

[0237] Normally, the information presentation device 100 calculates a differential value Δθ based on data of two steering angles θ, performs gain adjustment of an excitation waveform, and outputs vibration.

[0238] In addition, for example, when data related to the steering angle θ cannot be obtained twice within the required time due to a communication error in the vehicle-mounted LAN, the differential calculation unit 120 of the information prompting device 100 uses other data related to the steering angle θ obtained previously (recently) to calculate the differential value Δθ of the steering angle θ.

[0239] In order to present information without delay as described above, it is effective to prepare an excitation waveform in advance. In order not to give passengers a sense of discomfort, it is preferable to obtain and output (reproduce) the waveform when the vehicle is actually running, but this will cause output delay.

[0240] Therefore, in the first embodiment, by recording the waveform data acquired in advance in the waveform storage unit 111 with a memory function and saving it as a waveform file, and outputting information prompts to the file according to the operation information, a system is created that uses a more natural waveform without compromising the information prompt effect.

[0241] According to the first embodiment described above, the following effects can be obtained.

[0242] (1) For example, when it is impossible to obtain two parameters (steering angle θ) within the required time due to the communication status of the vehicle-mounted LAN, etc., the change in the parameter (differential value Δθ) is calculated using the parameter obtained previously (typically the previous one), thereby preventing the output delay of the information prompt device from causing driving difficulty.

[0243] (2) By using a waveform based on the in-vehicle sound recorded by microphone 140 during actual driving as an excitation waveform, natural information presentation can be performed, and by using a waveform stored in advance, output delay can be prevented compared to the case where a waveform is acquired each time.

[0244] <Second Embodiment>

[0245] Next, a second embodiment of the information presentation device to which the present invention is applied will be described.

[0246] In each embodiment described below, substantially the same parts as those in the previous embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted, and mainly the differences are described.

[0247] The information prompting device of the second embodiment is characterized in that information on a parameter (steering angle θ) related to the driving operation amount is obtained more than three times within a required time, and even if a part of the information cannot be obtained, the data of the delayed part is excluded and the change amount of the parameter is calculated within the required time, and a vibration output is performed.

[0248] In the second embodiment described above, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be obtained.

[0249] <Third Embodiment>

[0250] Next, a third embodiment of the information presentation device to which the present invention is applied will be described.

[0251] The information presentation device of the third embodiment is characterized in that when only one piece of information on a parameter (steering angle θ) related to the driving operation amount can be obtained within a required time, the change amount (Δθ) of the parameter for setting the magnitude of vibration is maintained at the previous value.

[0252] According to the third embodiment described above, when only one or less parameter data can be acquired within the required time, it is possible to prevent the output delay of the information presentation device from causing driving difficulty.

[0253] <Next, a fourth embodiment of the information presentation device to which the present invention is applied will be described.

[0254] The information presentation device of the fourth embodiment estimates the response characteristics of the vehicle based on the frequency of the driver's driving operation and the like, and sequentially estimates the time from the operation input until the occurrence of a vehicle behavior exceeding the occupant's recognition threshold.

[0255] In a first embodiment, the information prompting device 100 controls the output timing of the vibration in the following manner: the ratio of the time from the change of a parameter (e.g., the steering angle θ) until the vibration is output from the speaker 170 to the time from the change of the parameter until the vehicle exhibits a behavior that exceeds a discrimination threshold is maintained within a predetermined allowable range.

[0256] According to the fourth embodiment described above, even when the response characteristics of the vehicle change due to the driver's operation frequency, for example, it is possible to prevent the timing of outputting vibration from being shifted and causing a sense of discomfort.

[0257] <Fifth Embodiment>

[0258] Next, a fifth embodiment of the information presentation device to which the present invention is applied will be described.

[0259] In the fifth embodiment, the vehicle has an automatic driving function that autonomously performs steering operations, acceleration and deceleration operations, and the like without relying on the driving operation of the driver.

[0260] Fig.12 It is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of an automatic driving system of a vehicle provided with the information presenting device according to the fifth embodiment.

[0261] The automatic driving system 300 includes an automatic driving control unit 310 , an engine control unit 320 , a transmission control unit 330 , a brake control unit 340 , and the like in addition to the electric power steering control unit 90 .

[0262] Each of these units includes a microcomputer having an information processing unit such as a CPU, a storage unit such as a RAM and a ROM, an input / output interface, and a bus that connects them.

[0263] In addition, the units can communicate with each other via an in-vehicle LAN connection such as a CAN communication system or a direct connection.

[0264] The automatic driving control unit 310 recognizes the environment around the vehicle using various sensors such as a stereo camera device, a millimeter wave radar device, a laser scanner device, and a high-precision 3D map.

[0265] The automatic driving control unit 310 generates an automatic driving scenario including information related to the driving route, speed, etc. of the host vehicle based on the recognized environment.

[0266] Based on the autonomous driving scenario, the autonomous driving control unit 310 provides instructions to the electric power steering control unit 90, the engine control unit 320, the transmission control unit 330, and the brake control unit 340 to control the steering and acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle.

[0267] Instead of the steering input from the driver as in the first embodiment, the electric power steering control unit 90 controls the actuator unit 80 to steer the wheels W based on the requested steering angle instructed by the automatic driving control unit 310 .

[0268] The engine control unit 320 centrally controls the engine and its auxiliary machines, which are the driving power source of the vehicle.

[0269] The engine control unit 320 controls the output of the engine in such a manner that the torque actually generated by the engine matches the requested torque instructed by the automatic driving control unit 310 .

[0270] The transmission control unit 330 centrally controls the transmission and its auxiliary machines for changing the speed (decelerating or increasing) of the rotation of the output shaft of the engine.

[0271] The transmission control unit 330 performs switching between driving range and non-driving range, switching between forward and reverse travel, speed change during forward travel (change of the gear ratio), and the like according to instructions from the automatic driving control unit 310 .

[0272] The brake control unit 340 controls the braking force of the hydraulic service brake provided on each wheel of the vehicle.

[0273] The brake control unit 340 adjusts the brake fluid pressure supplied to the wheel cylinder of each wheel according to the requested braking force instructed by the automatic driving control unit 310 to generate the required braking force.

[0274] In the fifth embodiment, even in the case of automatic driving where the driver basically does not perform any steering operation, the requested steering angle prompted from the automatic driving control unit 310 to the electric power steering control unit 90 is used as an input to the information prompting device 100 (a parameter related to the steering angle of the steering device), and a first gain adjustment is performed based on its differential value.

[0275] According to the fifth embodiment described above, even in a vehicle that performs automatic driving, by generating a sound corresponding to the absolute value of the differential value of the steering angle when starting steering based on automatic driving control, it is possible for the occupants to foresee the occurrence of vehicle behavior accompanied by the occurrence of lateral acceleration, yaw rate, roll angle, etc., and it is possible to prevent the occupants from feeling abrupt about the vehicle's behavior.

[0276] (Variation Example)

[0277] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and changes can be made, and these modifications and changes are also within the technical scope of the present invention.

[0278] (1) The configurations of the information presentation device and the vehicle are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be modified as appropriate.

[0279] For example, the hardware configuration of the information presentation device and the specific method of adjusting the gain of the excitation waveform are not limited to the configurations of the respective embodiments, and can be modified as appropriate.

[0280] (2) In each embodiment, for example, a steering angle (an actual steering angle detected by a steering angle sensor or a requested steering angle in autonomous driving control) is used as a parameter related to the steering amount of the steering device, but the parameter is not limited to this and can be appropriately changed.

[0281] For example, it can be configured to have at least one of a steering torque (input torque) input by a driver, an operation amount of an actuator for steering wheels (for example, a rotation amount of a motor), an output instruction value for the actuator, and the like.

[0282] (3) The present invention is not limited to being applied to a vehicle having a device that mechanically connects an operating member such as a steering wheel to a steering mechanism such as a steering gear box as in the various embodiments, but can also be applied to a vehicle having a steer-by-wire steering device that does not mechanically connect a steering wheel to a steering mechanism. In this case, the actual steering angle of the front wheels and the state of the steering mechanism (for example, the rotation angle position of the pinion, the movement amount of the rack shaft, etc.) can be used as parameters related to the steering amount of the steering device.

[0283] (4) In each embodiment, as an example, the level of the background noise of the vehicle is acquired using a microphone, but the present invention is not limited thereto and the level of the background noise may be acquired by other methods. For example, the level of the background noise may be estimated based on the acceleration of the unsprung portion of the vehicle related to the input from the road surface and the output value (torsion bar torque) of the torque sensor of the steering device.

[0284] (5) In the first embodiment, the driver sets the parameters indicating the amount of operation of the steering device to the driving operation device as, for example, the steering amount and the steering torque. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other values ​​may be set as parameters.

[0285] For example, the operation amount of the accelerator pedal and the requested torque set based on the operation amount may be used as parameters indicating the operation amount, and a sound (vibration) may be generated according to the amount of change thereof.

[0286] Alternatively, the operation amount of the brake pedal and the target braking force set based on the operation amount may be used as parameters indicating the operation amount, and sound (vibration) may be generated in accordance with the amount of change thereof.

[0287] (6) In the third embodiment, the information display device acquires data related to the parameter (steering angle) from CAN or the like and calculates the change amount (differential value), but the present invention is not limited to this, and the change amount of the parameter may be calculated on the vehicle side (outside the information display device) and then sent to the information display device via CAN or the like. In this case, when the acquisition time of the change amount is longer than the required time, the previous value (typically the previous one) can be maintained in the same manner as in the third embodiment.

Claims

1. An information prompting device, It is characterized in that Installed in the vehicle and equipped with: a parameter detection unit that detects a parameter related to an operation amount of a driving operation device of the vehicle; a vibration generating unit that vibrates the air around the occupant or a member that the occupant contacts; and a vibration adjusting unit configured to change the magnitude of the vibration generated by the vibration generating unit according to the amount of change per unit time of the parameter, The parameter detection unit acquires the parameter at least twice within a required time, wherein the required time is a time required from input of the parameter until output of the vibration. When it takes the required time or longer to acquire the parameter twice, the vibration adjustment unit calculates the amount of change in the parameter using the parameter previously acquired by the parameter detection unit.

2. An information prompting device, It is characterized in that Installed in the vehicle and equipped with: a parameter detection unit that detects a parameter related to an operation amount of a driving operation device of the vehicle; a vibration generating unit that vibrates the air around the occupant or a member that the occupant contacts; and a vibration adjusting unit configured to change the magnitude of the vibration generated by the vibration generating unit according to the amount of change per unit time of the parameter, The parameter detection unit acquires the parameter at least three times within a required time, wherein the required time is a time required from input of the parameter until output of the vibration. When a part of the parameters cannot be acquired, the vibration adjustment unit calculates the amount of change of the parameters using the other parameters acquired by the parameter detection unit.

3. An information prompting device, It is characterized in that Installed in the vehicle and equipped with: a parameter detection unit that detects a parameter related to an operation amount of a driving operation device of the vehicle; a vibration generating unit that vibrates the air around the occupant or a member that the occupant contacts; and a vibration adjusting unit configured to change the magnitude of the vibration generated by the vibration generating unit according to the amount of change per unit time of the parameter, The parameter detection unit acquires the parameter at least twice within a required time, wherein the required time is a time required from input of the parameter until output of the vibration. When the parameter can acquire only one or less data within the required time, the vibration adjustment unit maintains the change amount of the parameter for setting the magnitude of the vibration at a previous value.

4. The information prompting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, It is characterized in that The information prompting device comprises: a waveform storage unit that stores a waveform of a sound inside the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling on a specific road; and The excitation waveform generating unit causes the vibration generating unit to vibrate with the waveform stored in the waveform storing unit when the vehicle is traveling on the specific road surface.

5. The information prompting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, It is characterized in that The vibration generating unit controls the timing of outputting the vibration so that a ratio of a time from a change in the parameter until the vibration is output to a time from a change in the parameter until a predetermined behavior of the vehicle occurs is maintained within a preset allowable range.

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